Process for the preservation of fresh fruits and vegetables



Patented F b. 9, 1926,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFF ICL- HARRY R. FULTON aim JOHN J. BOWMAN, or wnsnme'ron, DISTRICT or- .-COLUMBIA. x U

PROCESS FOR THE PRESER V-ATION OF FRESH FRUITS AND VEGETABLES.

, 'No Drawing. Original application filed September 14, 1925, Serial-No. 56,415, Di id d and t i appli.

' cation d October 3, 1925. Serial No. 60,331

(GRANTED UNDER THE Aer or MARCH 3', 1883; 22 sTA'r. L.' ;625. L

To all 'whom it may concern."

Be it known that we, HARRY R.',FUL'1ON and JOHN J. BOWMAN, citizens of the; United States of America, and employees of the 6 United States pf America, and employees of the United States Department of Agriculture, residing at WVashington, j :D. C., whose post-ofl-"ice address-is care of De'partment of Agriculture, Washington-, D. C., 10 have invented certain new and useful Processes for the Preservation of Fresh Fruits 'and Vegetables, of which the following is a specification. i This application is a division of our application which bears Serial No. 56,4;15 and' filing date September 14-,=-j1925,'on the same subject, and is made under the act of'j'March 3, 1883, chapter 143 (22 Stat, 625) and the invention herein described and claimed may be used by the Government of the United States, and its officers and employees, and by any person in the United States without the payment to us of any royalty thereon. We hereby dedicate the same to the free useof-the Government and the people of the United States. The object of. this invention is to prevent the development of decay in ci'trous and other fruits and vegetables during the process off? marketing, especially the prevention of the.

forms of'decayof citrous fruits known as stem-end rot and blue-mold rot.

It has long been known'z'that borax and boric acid have the property. of preventing or retarding decay in fresh or raw fruits and vegetables. We have discovered that certain combinations of borax or of boric acid with certainother chemicals that re--- act with the bore): or with the boricfhcid forming new combinations have superior preservative properties. 'We have found that such preparations are especially efi'ective'and useful for the control of varioustypes of decay because of (1') their antiseptic or inhibitory action on the fungi causing the decay; (2) their ability to wet the surface and adhere thereto and penetrate to Thecombina'tions, all in'aqueous solution,

that have proved to be effective and-useful for-this purpose are: (a) 5% by weight'of borax 1.39% by weight of anhydrous sodium carbonate; (1)) 5% by weight of boric acid and 4;.27% by weight of anhydrous sodium ',carbonate. The above stated pro-v portions are for full strength of the chemi cals; the equivalents of these'are to be, taken in case lessthan 'full stren'gth of any ingredient is -used in making the solution.

The strengths of solutions indicated are satisfactorilyeifective, as are also strengths based upon'aslow as 3%fl'of borax or of,

boric-acid or :as high as 8% of .borax or of boricacid, 'with' the other ingredientsin p f p r proportions.

Other alkalis, such as so dii unh diid and sodiumbicarbonate, :may be'used in stead of sodium carbonate i .111 each of the above stated combinations B. ,O radicals-in proportions different from those in which they exist inborax. For -in 's'tance, -in combinations (a)' and (b) stated above the combin ng proportions and ingredients are such as to produce a ratio of l to l, according to the following chemical equations:

upany' 'oneof the solutions in the propor-- tions indicated and in thoroughly wetting the surface of the fruit .with the solution during the 'proce'ss'of'preparing it for market,

the-residue of the solution being allowed to dry on the fruit surface and to remain as a protection against subsequent, development of decay. The treatment has been found-cf fectivei at temperatures ranging from about 65 F. to about 120 F. At the higherrange of temperature (between F. and

F.) effectiveness is increased by soaking the fruit for about five minutes in a bath of the solution. It the treatment is given at lower temperatures, it is sufiicient to dip the fruit momentarily in the solution, or to spray the solution over the fruit by some suitable device. After being thoroughly wet with the solution the fruit should be dried in any convenient way, such as may be used ordinarily in citrous packing houses after simple washing of the fruit; and the other processes of brushing and polishing may be followed as is usually the practice with citrous fruits. Similar procedure would be followed with other fruits and vegetables,

the object being to apply a thorough surface coating of the solution during the process of preparing the fruit for market, to allow it to dry so as to leave a slight and inconspicuous but elfective residue, that will have a preservative eli'ect during a prolonged marketing period.

The specific advance over other methods previously used consists intreating the fresh fruits and vegetables with a solution'o'f borax or boric acid combined with mineral acids or with alkalis in such way as to produce highly effective combinations of Na O and 13 0 namely Na QB O these being applied in such way as to leave a slight surface deposit that will efi ectively check thedcvelopment of rot fungi over an extended marketing period.

1. An improved process for preparing fresh fruits and vegetables for market, which comprises the application to the surface of such articles of an aqueous solution containing the sodium oxide radical and the boric acid radical in equal proportions and of such a strength as to effectively retard the growth and development of the organisms that cause stenrend rot, blue-mold rot, and other forms of decay.

2. An improved process for preparing fresh fruits and vegetables for market which comprises the application to the surface of such articles of a solution containing al proximatelyji-parts by weight of borax and 1.39 parts by weight of anhydrous sodium carbonate in 100 parts by weight of water, to effectively retard the growth or development of the organisms causing stem-end rot, blue-mold rot, or other forms of decay.

HARRY a. FULTON. JOHN J. BOWMAN. 

